By Shakirudeen Bankole
An investigative report by the America’s Cable News Network, CNN, aired Wednesday, November 18, 2020, showed soldiers drafted to the scene of the Lekki protest shot at protesters, using live bullets during the October 10 infamous incident at the Lekki Toll Plaza in Lagos.
In a 5 minutes, 54 seconds video, CNN analysed several footages collected from the scene, in addition to satellite visuals, and intels from Ammunition Manufacturers, to cast aspersion on the claims of innocence by the government and the Nigerian Army that no peaceful protesters were shot at or killed at the scene.
The Lekki Toll Plaza was the grand zero for peaceful protesters, who were demonstrating against police brutality and corruption, especially alleged extrajudicial killing and extortion of innocent Nigerians by the now disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).
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On day 12 of the nationwide protest, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, declared a Curfew from 4pm to 6am, citing increasing cases of violence.
The curfew followed the hijack of the peaceful protest by some hoodlums who were looting and destroying properties, including over a dozen police stations and three Local Government Secretariats that were set ablaze.
Governor Sanwo-Olu reportedly requested the assistance of the Nigerian Army to help quell the protests when it was obvious that the protesters have overwhelmed the capacity of the Nigeria Police personnel deployed to the scene.
At about 6:39pm, according to the CNN Reports, soldiers from Bonny Camp, drove to the scene of the protest and open fire on armless protesters, even as they chanted National Anthem and waved the country’s Green White Green flags.
Sanwo-Olu and the Nigerian Army, have continued to deny that soldiers fired live shots, after initially disowning the soldiers. Governor Sanwo-Olu also initially denied ever seeking the help and assistance of the Army in assisting to quell the protest in Lagos.
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Also, their initial claim that no live ammunition was shot at protesters, and that nobody was killed, soon vanished to the air, in the face of video footages.
The CNN said it spoke to over 100 victims before arriving at its findings. In the CNN video, bodies of fatally injured protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate were seen, with some lying numb in the pools of their own blood.
Despite media reports showing alleged culpability of men and in the Lekki shooting, officers of the Nigerian Army and the governor of Lagos state, Sanwo-Olu have consistently denied claims of shooting at protesters at the Lekki Toll Plaza, saying it only used blanks and not live ammunitions.
“No one was killed in the shootings of #ENDSARS protesters in Lekki on Tuesday night,” Governor Sanwo-Olu stated.
In a broadcast on Wednesday, Sanwo-Olu said he visited the hospitals and mortuaries in the state to check on victims on Tuesday night and saw no one shot dead in the protest.
“There’s no way officers and men will kill their brothers and sisters. I repeat no way. We have those who constantly seek to drive a wedge between us and between the citizens of Nigeria.” Brigadier General Ahmed Taiwo told the Lagos Judicial Panel last Saturday.
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